DeBary woman raped by man who offered to escort her home from bar

A DeBary woman was raped by a man who offered to walk her home from a bar early Friday morning, a sheriff's spokesman said.

The 27-year-old woman told deputies she had been at Shotz Bar at 167 S. Charles R. Beall Blvd. in DeBary with a friend Thursday night. Her friend left but the victim stayed longer and decided to walk home at 1:45 a.m. Friday, said sheriff's spokesman Brandon Haught.

As the woman left the bar an unknown man offered to go with her, investigators said.

The rape suspect is described as in his 20s, tall, thin and white with short brown hair, deputies said.

The man offered to escort the woman home and the two started walking together. However, they went in the direction opposite of the victim's house. When she asked the man where they were going, he explained he just needed to stop at his house first, Haught said.

The victim and the suspect entered a patch of woods, which the woman assumed was a short cut, and that is when the man attacked her, Haught said.

After raping the woman, the man asked her if she was going to call the cops and she said no. They then both walked away in separate directions. The victim went to a friend's house and the friend reported the rape to the Sheriff's Office, Haught said.

The man didn't have a weapon or imply he had one. The victim suffered injuries from the rape but didn't have any additional injuries from the attack, according to investigators.

Anyone with information about the rape is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 386-736-5999 or Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida, toll-free, at 1-888- 277-8477 (TIPS). Resident can also text a tip by texting “TIP231 plus the message” to CRIMES. Tipsters who provide information to Crime Stoppers will remain anonymous and can qualify for a reward of up to $1,000.